Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites--such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of a nearly four-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young planet to the incredible Cambrian explosion, presenting a compelling new explanation for the emergence of biological novelty. The very latest discoveries in paleontology--many of them made by the author and his students--are integrated with emerging insights from molecular biology and earth system science to forge a broad understanding of how the biological diversity that surrounds us came to be. Moving from Siberia to Namibia to the Bahamas, Knoll shows how life and environment have evolved together through Earth's history. Innovations in biology have helped shape our air and oceans, and, just as surely, environmental change has influenced the course of evolution, repeatedly closing off opportunities for some species while opening avenues for others. Readers go into the field to confront fossils, enter the lab to discern the inner workings of cells, and alight on Mars to ask how our terrestrial experience can guide exploration for life beyond our planet. Along the way, Knoll brings us up-to-date on some of science's hottest questions, from the oldest fossils and claims of life beyond the Earth to the hypothesis of global glaciation and Knoll's own unifying concept of ''permissive ecology.'' In laying bare Earth's deepest biological roots, Life on a Young Planet helps us understand our own place in the universe--and our responsibility as stewards of a world four billion years in the making. In a new preface, Knoll describes how the field has broadened and deepened in the decade since the book's original publication.

The popular belief that a scientific understanding of reality is incompatible with a Christian one is simply wrong. Some Christian understandings of reality do conflict with some scientific understandings. But a thoroughly rational Christian understanding of the origin and history of the universe will be informed by the best scientific theories and the "facts" founded on them. This book weaves a narrative of the origin and history of the universe from the perspective of contemporary science with a Christian understanding of God and of God's role in the origin and history of the universe. At the center of this integrated narrative is the view that God, who is pure, unbounded Love, is Creator: the zest for life in the universe comes from God, and God is the source of Truth, Beauty, and Goodness in the universe. God is amazed and delighted at what God-and-the-world has created; God is saddened by ways creatures have fallen short of pure, unbounded Love, Truth, Beauty, and Goodness; and God's pure, unbounded Love keeps on trying to persuade all creatures toward Truth, Beauty, and Goodness.

Energy: Engine of Evolution is a book about evolution, energy and sustainable development. Since the origin of life, five energy revolutions have passed and Earth is again at the threshold of a new era. This highly practical book paves the way in the search for efficient techniques. In it, the author argues that a sixth energy revolution is required to support the new way of life, and explores possible energy pathways to a more endurable future. Packed with inspiring insights, and examples of new approaches to technological and evolutionary developments, Energy: Engine of Evolution is exceptional reading for business professionals, politicians and scientists. * Provides evolutionary insight * Introduces an Energy Time Scale that shows key relationships between energy and the history of planet Earth * Contains exciting examples of new approaches to technological and evolutionary developments

The Tangled Bank is the first textbook about evolution intended for the general reader. Zimmer, an award-winning science writer, takes readers on a fascinating journey into the latest discoveries about evolution. In the Canadian Arctic, paleontologists unearth fossils documenting the move of our ancestors from sea to land. In the outback of Australia, a zoologist tracks some of the world's deadliest snakes to decipher the 100-million-year evolution of venom molecules. In Africa, geneticists are gathering DNA to probe the origin of our species. In clear, non-technical language, Zimmer explains the central concepts essential for understanding new advances in evolution, including natural selection, genetic drift, and sexual selection. He demonstrates how vital evolution is to all branches of modern biology--from the fight against deadly antibiotic-resistant bacteria to the analysis of the human genome. Richly illustrated with 285 illustrations and photographs, The Tangled Bank is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the history of life on Earth.

The subtitle tells us all we need to know about the contents, and the publisher's reputation tells us the rest ... beautifully compiled ... with thorough subject, title and author indexes. " Reference Reviews" It's surprising how quickly a new reference can come to seem essential when it brings together previously uncompiled information. Such is the case with this guide... " Reference & Research Book News " I find this book an excellent collection development tool that renders its rivals obsolete ... I have used it several times to get patrons on the right track for their reading wants and needs. Wilson Library Bulletin Based on positive reviews from respected sources ("Library Journal," "Booklist," "Choice," "The New Yorker," "The New York Times Books Review," "Atlantic," Time, Newsweek and others), this cornerstone resource gives you all the information you need to evaluate, choose and order any of more than 10,000 ESSENTIAL books for your collection." Best Books for Public Libraries" divides titles into two parts: fiction (by genre) and nonfiction (by Dewey Decimal classes). Entries identify award winners, best-sellers, and large-type editions, in addition to providing the title, author, publication date, publisher, price, edition, ISBN, a brief annotation, and citations for published reviews.

A professor at Rutgers University uses insight and humor to discuss the importance of microbes, the tiny, complex nanomachines that support the very existence of all life on earth and cautions against the possible dangers of tinkering with them.

"With humor and humanity, "Oxygen" captures the excitement of scientific discovery and describes the amazing natural history of how Earth's oxygenated atmosphere came to be."--Ed DeLong, Massachusetts Institute of Technology "A fascinating, accessible tour through the history of atmospheric oxygen, written by one of the world's top geobiologists. Canfield takes the reader from the anaerobic early Archean Earth up through the modern highly oxygenated environment, providing pointers to the relevant scientific literature along the way. Even experts in this field will learn things from his book."--James Kasting, author of "How to Find a Habitable Planet" "In "Oxygen," Don Canfield recounts two epics in one--the evolution of breathable air over the entirety of Earth history, and the equally engaging account of how scientists have reconstructed this history from chemical details in ancient rocks. Even those who know the story well, or think they do, will find much food for thought."--Andrew Knoll, Harvard University, author of "Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth" "Canfield takes us on a journey through the discovery of what produces oxygen, how oxygen evolved on the planet, and how that evolution influenced other aspects of planetary evolution. An enjoyable book."--Lee Kump, coauthor of "The Earth System" "This is a wonderful introduction to the most important event in Earth history--the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere. Canfield shares his broad and deep grasp of the field, his research leadership, his respect and admiration for the work of others, and his excitement and healthy skepticism about what we know--and still need to know."--Timothy W. Lyons, University of California, Riverside